By: Fredwill Hernandez
SESAC Latina, the music rights organization celebrated another year of continued growth and success during its annual 2018 SESAC Latina Music Awards, sponsored by Sound Royalties, and City National Bank, to honor its members, affiliates, publishers, and songwriters achievements during a stellar gala held Wed. – May 23, at the Beverly Hills Hotel, Beverly Hills, [Ca].
Calibre 50’s songwriter, and lead singer Edén Muñoz, who is considered one of the top songwriter’s in the Regional Mexican realm, was awarded his first-ever Songwriter of the Year award for hit songs he penned [this past year] for Julión Álvarez, [his own group] Calibre 50, Banda Carnaval and others. Coincidently Muñoz [this year] was also nominated for Songwriter of the Year at the Billboard Latin Music Awards.
In the category of Song of the Year, which is determined by the longevity of a song’s presence on the [Billboard] charts, the SESAC Latina Award [as expected] went to “Despacito,” recorded by Luis Fonsi & Daddy Yankee [feat. Justin Bieber], co-written by Erika Ender. Ender was also honored with the SESAC Latina Global Icon Award, for her [long] illustrious and prolific songwriting career.
In 2017, Ender became the youngest female inducted into The Latin Songwriters Hall of Fame, and during the 17th Annual Latin Grammy’s held Nov. 17, 2016, she became the first Panamenian to win a Latin Grammy under the Best Regional [Mexican] Song category for Los Tigres Del Norte “Ataud”, written by Ender, Manu Moreno and Mónica Vélez. As a singer-songwriter, Ender [who writes in Spanish, Portuguese, and English] has released six studio albums and songs that she has penned are featured on more than 160 albums, among those, 40 singles penned by her have topped charts around the world.
As to how she feels about receiving SESAC Latin Global Icon Awards, and advise she would give young girls looking up to her, Ender said, “I feel humbly blessed, this past year and a half has been amazing, excepting this award with a lot of responsibility, I’m all for women empowerment, and In hopes I can be an example of inspiration to others, specially women. When I was young there were women that I looked up to and that empowered me, so I hope I can be that [same] inspiration to other young girls who look up to me, not necessarily to become singer’s or songwriters like me, but for them to know they can excel and become “whatever” they set their mind to do.”
In addition, for a 3rd consecutive year SONY/ATV was named Publisher of the Year. With [part] his team accepting in person at the celebration, Jorge Mejia, President of SONY/ATV Music Publishing for Latin America and U.S. Latin, addressed the audience via video.
Mexican singer-songwriter Christian Nodal signed to Regional Mexican powerhouse Fonovisa, a division of Universal Music Latin Entertainment, performed an incredible set of his top hits that included “Adiós Amor” and “Probablemente”, [both] who reached #1 on the Billboard Regional Mexican charts and for which Nodal [also] won a SESAC Latina performance award as songwriter.
Coincidently last month, Nodal received the awards for Regional Mexican Song of the Year for his hit “Adiós Amor,” Regional Mexican Artist of the Year, Solo and Artist of the Year, New, during the Billboard Latin Music Awards.
Fernando Corona, Sharlene Taulé, Jencarlos Canela, Luciano Luna, America Sierra, were among those spotted during the [event’s] black carpet arrivals, as well as executives from Peermusic, and Universal Music Latin Entertainment.